PMI Data Highlight Divergences Among Euro-Zone Countries

"Buy Europe!" has been the rallying cry as the euro zone has gradually emerged from its long, drawn-out recession. Since late June, European stocks have been on a tear, with all of the major indexes scoring double-digit percentage gains, helped by ultraloose global monetary policy. But for next year, the question may be: Which parts of Europe should investors buy?

November's manufacturing purchasing managers' indexes from Markit both confirm and challenge the narrative that investors have broadly been following....